Through the 2013 NBA Draft, which is set for June 27, former Florida Gators forward Erik Murphy, the team’s leading three-point shooter last season (.453), will be keeping you up-to-date on his Path to the Draft via a weekly blog entry here on OGGOA.

Between workouts in Las Vegas, NV on Thursday, which he is taking part in as preparation for next week’s 2013 NBA Combine, Murphy got in touch with OGGOA to discuss what he has been doing to get ready for the draft over the last month.

After the tournament, I took a little bit of time off, about a week and a half to just hang out, relax and unwind. I did not even meet with any agents during that time. Eventually I met with a couple people – B.J. Armstrong and Art Tellem (Wasserman Media Group), for example – with my dad, who came down, Coach [Billy] Donovan and others were there to help me. I was talking with Mark Bartelstein (Priority Sports and Entertainment) because he’s [the agent for Chandler Parsons, Bradley Beal and David Lee], but I just decided that Andy Miller (ASM Sports) was the best choice for me.

I just felt really comfortable with him. Going through the process of being with the agents, getting to know them a little more, it’s a partnership hopefully for a long time, so you want to be comfortable with the person. They’re all great and do what they do well; it was just a comfort level and getting along with him really well that made the decision pretty easy at the end.

Part of my conversation with Andy was laying out a plan for the entire process. Most of the guys Andy signs, as long as they find it agreeable, he sends them out to Las Vegas to train at Impact Basketball. I’ve actually been out here before when I was young, training for a couple weeks during the summer, but Impact is a different spot, of course. He basically set me up out here with Impact and [founder/president] Joe Abunassar.

I’ve just been out here for the last three weeks, except when I went back to school for graduation, working out every day, lifting, getting in really good shape and getting a good feel for what I’ll be doing during the combine. It’s a good idea to get comfortable with the process, get acclimated before the combine.

I’m doing some individual work and also playing with other guys that are here getting ready for the draft and trying to get back in the league. There’s probably about 15 others out here right now. Some days you do a little bit more with the group than by yourself but there is a nice balance. The workouts you go into are not just one-on-one when you’re with teams, so there is a lot of individual instruction here at Impact but also plenty of work playing on the court with a few other guys.

Some of the guys who have played in the NBA before working out here now are Dexter Pittman and Christian Eyenga. There are also a bunch of guys from the NBA D-League and others playing across the country that are all in town to train.

Kenny Boynton has been out here the last two weeks – he came late because he was finishing up a class – and is really comfortable in Las Vegas because he’s been out here before, the last two summers working out.

I’m rooming with Peyton Siva (Louisville) while I’m out here; we have a little two-bedroom place like an apartment that they set up for us. I’ve known Peyton for a long time, we’ve crossed paths in tournaments and at AAU events. Getting to know him more now, he’s a really nice kid. Other guys training with us at Impact include Colton Iverson (Colorado State), Khalif Wyatt (Temple), Will Clyburn (Iowa State), Abul Gaddy (Washington) and Deshaun Thomas (Ohio State).

The way the process is set up, there is just a short period of time before you go into these team workouts. I’m not going to make any drastic improvements in such a short time, most likely, so while I am working on all facets of my game, I also want to highlight what I do well, which is shoot the ball. So I’m getting a lot of shots up, a lot of looks from different areas of the court and working on what they will be testing us on at the combine and during team workouts. I’m also staying in great shape and focusing on ways in which I can get stronger and faster and better prepared for the NBA.

The NBA moved up the pre-draft camp from June to next Wednesday (May 15), a few weeks earlier this year, so I won’t be meeting with any teams over the next week, just during and after that combine.

I know everyone wants to know a projected draft spot – trust me, I wish I knew – but it is very fluid. Andy has somewhat of an idea – there are teams he has spoken with and some obviously have more interest than others – but the workouts and meetings will be important. The draft is so unpredictable. There’s no real range. Obviously I’d love to be a first-round pick but going anywhere in the second round is possible; not being drafted is possible; late, late first round is possible. It really all depends on how this next month, month-and-a-half plays out.

Thank you all for following along on my path to the draft. I’m looking forward to providing OGGOA with updates each week throughout the process.

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2 Comments

Hope he get’s after it and gets picked up by a great organization. He translates well with his size and 3 ball. The NBA is shifting to complement his abilities perfectly. If he keeps his defense up he could be a valuable role player.

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